The Darker Side of Social Construction - The Plight of the Medical Workers in Libya
The assertion that what we call reality is a mental construct held together with brick and mortar comprised of the narratives we tell each other was once a hotly disputed topic among academics. It seems less and less controversial now, especially as the rubrics of this theory continually play themselves out in the very stories we see and hear in the media each day, no less so than the ones we tell each other in our personal lives.
Perhaps most strikingly these days this type of reality-creating enterprise is playing itself out in Iraq, and in Washington, where it is becoming increasingly clear that the “winner” will be the one who can sustain the story. And it is playing itself out in a most bizarre manner in Libya today, where five Bulgarian nurses and one Palestinian doctor have been yet again sentenced to death after being found guilty of infecting 400 children with the HIV virus.
In some ways there are essentially three narratives at play here. The first narrative is a straightforward spy novel, post Cold War potboiler. The CIA hires an operative from the Halliburton Company to contact one of these nurses to infect the children. The motive is sketchy, but with these three major players – CIA, Halliburton, and Libya – coming up with a motive does not take much heavy lifting.
The second narrative is a bit more complex. In this narrative the health care system in Libya at the time of the infections was so broken that poor hygiene (i.e. contaminated needles) was the cause of the infection. This narrative – “true” by any empirical standard from the fact-based community – is problematic because then Col. Qaddafi and his regime would take the brunt of the blame. Not only would their health care system be criticized publicly, but their judicial system as well.
The third narrative is the most complex of all, and may never be fully articulated. But it involves Bulgaria’s imminent inclusion into the EU, and Libya’s recent rapprochement with the west reopening her rich oil fields.
So, what will happen? The only narrative that works will become real. The convictions will stand, but the Libyan leader will mercifully spare the lives of the medical workers because there is a lack of absolute certainty about what happened. Because of this uncertainty, Libya will agree to share the responsibility for compensating the families of the children evenly with Bulgaria. The Bulgarian government, not because they believe that the nurses were guilty, but out of a humanitarian concern for the needs of these children, will agree to this arrangement.
And the nurses will go home to a hero’s welcome in Sophia, the Libyan leader will be haled as both wise and just by his people, and perhaps most importantly of all, the Libyan oil will continue to flow northward.
And the flowing oil may well be the most powerful reality we are all constructing these days.